The countdown to Bloom is on and I''m really looking forward to meeting our Irish Country Living readers at the event next week.
Here''s hoping we''ll continue to enjoy the good weather of recent weeks and that everyone can enjoy the beautiful gardens and food in the sun. Last week, I was writing about my new venture ''A Taste of Bloom, curated by Neven'' and I''m delighted that we have five pairs of tickets to give away in this week''s paper (see page 5).
There are also another 10 pairs of tickets for general entry and if you win one of those, you can come enjoy the cookery demos.
Curating this menu with Garrett Duff – one of the best caterers in the country – has been really exciting. We''ll have three starters, three mains and three desserts for our diners to choose from.
To start, we''ll be showcasing some delicious citrus cured organic salmon, adding some texture with a smoked haddock croquette. Diners can also choose from sticky lamb skewers with a flavoursome satay sauce, and we''ll be celebrating Irish cheese with some crispy Ardsallagh goat''s cheese.
Looking to the mains, of course, we''ll be celebrating Irish beef which is served slow cooked. The fillet of hake is paired with red pepper orzo topped with a bisque and the breast of Manor Farm chicken takes an interesting twist with fondant potatoes and balsamic lentils. I''m sure those opting for the vegetarian option will be impressed with the celeriac pithivier with black garlic and baby leeks.
Some of my favourite producers will be celebrated during dessert – we have a strawberry and lemon trifle, and a passionfruit posset, both using Pat Clarke''s berries. Or if you fancy something a little more indulgent, then the Coole Swan chocolate praline parfait is not to be missed.
It really is going to be a fantastic experience so best of luck to all those entering.
The two recipes I’m sharing this week could work well on a barbecue. The first is a buttermilk-marinated chicken. I love using buttermilk as a poultry marinade – you end up with the most tender, moist, and flavourful chicken with this method.
When it comes to sourcing good quality, always make sure you purchase chicken with the Bord Bia Quality Assurance mark. I also make sure I buy free-range chicken. These two things, I think, make all the difference when it comes to the final flavour.
With the breadcrumb topping, I sometimes add sesame seeds or a bit of curry powder in addition to the grated Parmesan cheese. As for the celeriac slaw, if you know me, you will know that I love celeriac. In the restaurant, we smoke it before turning it into a purée. We make soup with it, but celeriac is really versatile.
This slaw is similar to the French dish celeriac remoulade, but the sauce is a nice mixture of sweet, creamy and tangy. Combined with the julienned celeriac, it has such a unique and pleasing flavour. It also has great texture, making it an ideal pairing with this buttermilk chicken.
The second recipe for the week is one which my daughter Lucia has been making quite a lot of at home – these delicious chicken tacos. This is a very kid-friendly meal which has a bit of everything they need – fresh vegetables, carbohydrates, fibre and plenty of protein from the chicken, cheese and sour cream. I am always so happy to see my children get enjoyment out of cooking and this recipe is really fun.
I think it makes all the difference for children who might be picky eaters to get into the kitchen and prepare food. That way, they have fun, they learn as they go and are more likely to try new ingredients and flavour combinations.
When you cook from scratch, you know exactly what is going into your food, making healthy eating a lot easier.
Crispy buttermilk chicken with celeriac slaw
Serves 4: Ingredients
2 x 200g skinless chicken fillets
300ml buttermilk
2 tsp salt
50g butter, plus extra for greasing
100g fresh white breadcrumbs
40g freshly grated Parmesan
4 large slices chargrilled sourdough bread,
to serve
Snipped fresh chives, to garnish
Tomato or chilli relish, to serve
For the celeriac slaw:
1 small celeriac (about 675g in total)
4 tbsp roughly chopped, fresh flat leaf parsley
2 tbsp snipped fresh chives
2 tbsp buttermilk
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp cider vinegar
120ml mayonnaise
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
1 Cut each chicken fillet in half into two thin escalopes. Place on a cutting board. Put a piece of non-stick parchment paper on top of each one and quickly flatten out with a rolling pin to about 1cm
thick.
2 Place the buttermilk and salt in a bowl and add the chicken. Set aside at room temperature for 15 minutes to allow the buttermilk to tenderise the chicken.
3 Meanwhile, to make the celeriac slaw, peel the celeriac and then cut into julienne on a mandolin. Whisk the parsley, chives, buttermilk, maple syrup, mustard and vinegar into the mayonnaise and then fold in the celeriac. Season to taste.
4 Preheat the grill to high. The melt the butter in a small pan or in the microwave, then tip into a bowl. Add the breadcrumbs and Parmesan and season to taste. Then mix everything together to combine.
5 Remove the chicken from the buttermilk marinade, gently shaking off any excess. Place on a greased baking sheet and top with the bread crumb mixture. Grill for 4–5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the crumbs are golden.
6 Arrange the celeriac slaw on a piece of chargrilled sourdough on warmed plates. Top with the crispy buttermilk chicken and scatter over the chives.
Serve at once with small dishes of tomato or chilli relish for dipping.
Chicken tacos. \ Philip Doyle
Serves 4: Ingredients:
4 x 100g skinless, boneless
chicken breast fillets
Olive oil, for brushing
2 tsp smoked paprika
8 corn tortillas
150g cheddar cheese, grated
400g can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
4 spring onions, finely chopped
2 ripe tomatoes, finely chopped
Good handful of fresh coriander leaves
Juice of 1 lime
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Lime wedges, to serve
Sour cream, to serve
Method
1 Heat a non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Brush the chicken fillets with the oil and sprinkle over the smoked paprika. Then season to taste.
2 Add to the heated pan, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 4–5 minutes on each side, until just tender and cooked through. Remove from the heat and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Then cut into thin slices.
3 Wipe out the pan and put it back on a medium heat. Brush a corn tortilla with oil and place in the pan, oiled side down.
4 Place some of the cheese on one half of the tortilla and then add some of the chicken on top, followed by a scattering of kidney beans, spring onions, tomatoes and coriander leaves. Add a squeeze of lime juice and fold over to enclose the filling.
5 Cook the tortilla for 1–2 minutes on each side, until crisp and lightly golden. Repeat with the remaining ingredients and arrange on warmed plates to serve with the lime wedges and a separate small dish of soured cream.
Read more
Neven Maguire: new hook on Irish seafood
Neven Maguire: the versatility of Irish lamb
The countdown to Bloom is on and I''m really looking forward to meeting our Irish Country Living readers at the event next week.
Here''s hoping we''ll continue to enjoy the good weather of recent weeks and that everyone can enjoy the beautiful gardens and food in the sun. Last week, I was writing about my new venture ''A Taste of Bloom, curated by Neven'' and I''m delighted that we have five pairs of tickets to give away in this week''s paper (see page 5).
There are also another 10 pairs of tickets for general entry and if you win one of those, you can come enjoy the cookery demos.
Curating this menu with Garrett Duff – one of the best caterers in the country – has been really exciting. We''ll have three starters, three mains and three desserts for our diners to choose from.
To start, we''ll be showcasing some delicious citrus cured organic salmon, adding some texture with a smoked haddock croquette. Diners can also choose from sticky lamb skewers with a flavoursome satay sauce, and we''ll be celebrating Irish cheese with some crispy Ardsallagh goat''s cheese.
Looking to the mains, of course, we''ll be celebrating Irish beef which is served slow cooked. The fillet of hake is paired with red pepper orzo topped with a bisque and the breast of Manor Farm chicken takes an interesting twist with fondant potatoes and balsamic lentils. I''m sure those opting for the vegetarian option will be impressed with the celeriac pithivier with black garlic and baby leeks.
Some of my favourite producers will be celebrated during dessert – we have a strawberry and lemon trifle, and a passionfruit posset, both using Pat Clarke''s berries. Or if you fancy something a little more indulgent, then the Coole Swan chocolate praline parfait is not to be missed.
It really is going to be a fantastic experience so best of luck to all those entering.
The two recipes I’m sharing this week could work well on a barbecue. The first is a buttermilk-marinated chicken. I love using buttermilk as a poultry marinade – you end up with the most tender, moist, and flavourful chicken with this method.
When it comes to sourcing good quality, always make sure you purchase chicken with the Bord Bia Quality Assurance mark. I also make sure I buy free-range chicken. These two things, I think, make all the difference when it comes to the final flavour.
With the breadcrumb topping, I sometimes add sesame seeds or a bit of curry powder in addition to the grated Parmesan cheese. As for the celeriac slaw, if you know me, you will know that I love celeriac. In the restaurant, we smoke it before turning it into a purée. We make soup with it, but celeriac is really versatile.
This slaw is similar to the French dish celeriac remoulade, but the sauce is a nice mixture of sweet, creamy and tangy. Combined with the julienned celeriac, it has such a unique and pleasing flavour. It also has great texture, making it an ideal pairing with this buttermilk chicken.
The second recipe for the week is one which my daughter Lucia has been making quite a lot of at home – these delicious chicken tacos. This is a very kid-friendly meal which has a bit of everything they need – fresh vegetables, carbohydrates, fibre and plenty of protein from the chicken, cheese and sour cream. I am always so happy to see my children get enjoyment out of cooking and this recipe is really fun.
I think it makes all the difference for children who might be picky eaters to get into the kitchen and prepare food. That way, they have fun, they learn as they go and are more likely to try new ingredients and flavour combinations.
When you cook from scratch, you know exactly what is going into your food, making healthy eating a lot easier.
Crispy buttermilk chicken with celeriac slaw
Serves 4: Ingredients
2 x 200g skinless chicken fillets
300ml buttermilk
2 tsp salt
50g butter, plus extra for greasing
100g fresh white breadcrumbs
40g freshly grated Parmesan
4 large slices chargrilled sourdough bread,
to serve
Snipped fresh chives, to garnish
Tomato or chilli relish, to serve
For the celeriac slaw:
1 small celeriac (about 675g in total)
4 tbsp roughly chopped, fresh flat leaf parsley
2 tbsp snipped fresh chives
2 tbsp buttermilk
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp cider vinegar
120ml mayonnaise
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
1 Cut each chicken fillet in half into two thin escalopes. Place on a cutting board. Put a piece of non-stick parchment paper on top of each one and quickly flatten out with a rolling pin to about 1cm
thick.
2 Place the buttermilk and salt in a bowl and add the chicken. Set aside at room temperature for 15 minutes to allow the buttermilk to tenderise the chicken.
3 Meanwhile, to make the celeriac slaw, peel the celeriac and then cut into julienne on a mandolin. Whisk the parsley, chives, buttermilk, maple syrup, mustard and vinegar into the mayonnaise and then fold in the celeriac. Season to taste.
4 Preheat the grill to high. The melt the butter in a small pan or in the microwave, then tip into a bowl. Add the breadcrumbs and Parmesan and season to taste. Then mix everything together to combine.
5 Remove the chicken from the buttermilk marinade, gently shaking off any excess. Place on a greased baking sheet and top with the bread crumb mixture. Grill for 4–5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the crumbs are golden.
6 Arrange the celeriac slaw on a piece of chargrilled sourdough on warmed plates. Top with the crispy buttermilk chicken and scatter over the chives.
Serve at once with small dishes of tomato or chilli relish for dipping.
Chicken tacos. \ Philip Doyle
Serves 4: Ingredients:
4 x 100g skinless, boneless
chicken breast fillets
Olive oil, for brushing
2 tsp smoked paprika
8 corn tortillas
150g cheddar cheese, grated
400g can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
4 spring onions, finely chopped
2 ripe tomatoes, finely chopped
Good handful of fresh coriander leaves
Juice of 1 lime
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Lime wedges, to serve
Sour cream, to serve
Method
1 Heat a non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Brush the chicken fillets with the oil and sprinkle over the smoked paprika. Then season to taste.
2 Add to the heated pan, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 4–5 minutes on each side, until just tender and cooked through. Remove from the heat and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Then cut into thin slices.
3 Wipe out the pan and put it back on a medium heat. Brush a corn tortilla with oil and place in the pan, oiled side down.
4 Place some of the cheese on one half of the tortilla and then add some of the chicken on top, followed by a scattering of kidney beans, spring onions, tomatoes and coriander leaves. Add a squeeze of lime juice and fold over to enclose the filling.
5 Cook the tortilla for 1–2 minutes on each side, until crisp and lightly golden. Repeat with the remaining ingredients and arrange on warmed plates to serve with the lime wedges and a separate small dish of soured cream.
Read more
Neven Maguire: new hook on Irish seafood
Neven Maguire: the versatility of Irish lamb
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